Chelsea Manning Issues Dire Warning about Assange’s Arrest
"I think that ultimately what they really want is, they want to go after journalists," the WikiLeaks whistleblower says in a CNN interview.
Screenshot / CNN
Facing the possibility of being imprisoned yet again in the coming days for refusing to testify before a secretive grand jury, U.S. Army whistleblower Chelsea Manning on Sunday warned of the grave threat the Trump administration poses to press freedoms.
“I think that ultimately what they really want is, they want to go after journalists,” Manning said during an interview on CNN when asked whether the Trump administration’s effort to extradite WikiLeaks founder and publisher Julian Assange to the U.S. is a danger to the free press.
“This administration clearly wants to go after journalists,” Manning said. “I think that if the administration gets its way… we’re probably gonna see indictments and charges.”
“Whenever a journalist makes a misstep,” she added, “I think that they’re put on notice now that the FBI and the Department of Justice are going to go after them, on the administration’s behalf.”
Watch:
“This administration clearly wants to go after journalists,” says Chelsea Manning @xychelsea.
Manning was just released from prison but faces another subpoena and possibly more jail time for refusing to testify about her disclosure of secrets to Wikileaks https://t.co/so8MiPQYQH pic.twitter.com/HiCYUOIF3M
— Reliable Sources (@ReliableSources) May 12, 2019
As Common Dreams reported, Manning was released from jail on Friday after being held for 62 days—including a month in solitary confinement—for refusing to testify before a grand jury.
On CNN, Manning said she plans to fight a second subpoena to testify that was issued before she was even released from jail. According to Manning’s legal team, she could be held in contempt of court and sent to jail again as early as Thursday, May 16.
“I think that all grand juries are improper,” Manning told CNN‘s Brian Stelter. “I don’t like the secrecy of it.”
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Opinion
For starters, negotiating a plea deal would help shore up flagging support on the left.
TD Original
The WikiLeaks founder will get a chance to appeal extradition if assurances aren't made.
Manning is facing more than $256,000 in fines, which have been accumulating at a rate of $1,000 a day.
Famous Britons join the crowd protesting U.S. espionage charges against the founder of WikiLeaks, the secret-spilling website.
The global security state, which is not bound by the rule of law, will target all who defy it.
In a blistering letter to the U.S. government, Special Rapporteur Nils Melzer condemns the whistleblower's indefinite imprisonment.
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